Hurricane Irma update: On Sanibel, CROW continues to care for animals, storm-injured birds without power

A brown pelican rescued off of Fort Myers Beach was brought to CROW on Sanibel days after Hurricane Irma.
Andrea Melendez and Melissa Montoya/news-press.com

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CROW Clinic on Sanibel Island is intact after Hurricane Irma, just out of power. While they stopped to check on the few animals staying at the hospital and they were preparing a Red Tailed Hawk for release, a man brought an injured Brown Pelican in. After a check up it looked to be dehydrated or possibly a head injury. The team can't stay at the hospital, so at this time they can't take drop off sick or injured animals. CROW is asking you take them to your nearest vet and they will come pick them up from there. (Photo: Andrea Melendez/The News-Press)Buy Photo

Dr. Heather Barron is not a stranger to hurricanes and inclement weather.

Before she became the hospital director at the Clinic for the Rehabilitation of Wildlife on Sanibel, she worked in the Cayman Islands. When she arrived at CROW in 2012 she put a hurricane plan in place.

Barron had the chance to dust off the plan with Hurricane Irma's arrival Sunday.

"We all evacuated with all of the animals," Barron said. "We took a bunch offsite and we released anything that was close to release."

The CROW hospital has a power generator and did not lose electricity during Irma, but the center's living quarters were without power Tuesday morning. Because of this, CROW is asking anyone who finds injured wildlife to contact the Specialized Veterinary Services in Fort Myers at 239-947-0588. The clinic will eventually be able to pick the animals up at the animal hospital in Fort Myers.

On the way back to Sanibel after the storm's passing, Barron said they found at least five birds, including royal terns and seagulls, that took a beating during the storm.

"There were a lot of birds that were down," Barron said. "The storm just takes them and twists."

Julia Hill, Veterinary Intern at CROW Clinic, examines a Brown Pelican that was brought in from Fort Myers Beach that was said to be injured. CROW Clinic on Sanibel Island is intact after Hurricane Irma, just out of power. While they stopped to check on the few animals staying at the hospital and they were preparing a Red Tailed Hawk for release, a man brought an injured Brown Pelican in. After a check up it looked to be dehydrated or possibly a head injury. They will know more tomorrow after 24 hours of observation.(Photo: Andrea Melendez/The News-Press)

Despite just coming through the storm, the rehabilitation center was back to work Tuesday morning. Staffers were on their way to release a hawk and took in a brown pelican brought in by a man on Fort Myers Beach.

Ed Widtmann said he and his family wanted to get out of their Botanica Lakes home and decided to go to Fort Myers Beach when they drove by the Salty Crab on Fort Myers Beach when they were flagged down by an employee who found an injured pelican.

"To me, I'm just glad there are people to help take care of animals," Widtmann said. "They are beautiful animals. You just want to see a creature like that come back to health."

"You can imagine a bird out there in the water with all the winds and everything probably getting tossed around," Widtmann said.

Widtmann watched as veterinarians and interns treated the pelican. They could not find a broken wing, but the bird appeared to be weak and uncoordinated.

The pelican snapped at one of the veterinarians a few times before stumbling backward.

"If you can catch a bird, it's weak," said Julia Hill, a veterinary intern at CROW who helped treat the pelican. "It's not easy."

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The team at CROW Clinic prepare a Red Tail Hawk for release. The clinic was releasing as many animals that were healthy so they can make room for animals injured from the storm. CROW Clinic on Sanibel Island is intact after Hurricane Irma, just out of power. While they stopped to check on the few animals staying at the hospital and they were preparing a Red Tailed Hawk for release, a man brought an injured Brown Pelican in. After a check up it looked to be dehydrated or possibly a head injury. The team can't stay at the hospital, so at this time they can't take drop off sick or injured animals. CROW is asking you take them to your nearest vet and they will come pick them up from there. (Photo: Andrea Melendez/The News-Press)

Barron, the hospital director, said the storm did not do more than toss vegetation across its grounds. The facility was devastated during Hurricane Charley in 2004, she said.

"We are just so grateful it wasn't worse," Barron said. "I thought I would have no house."